Most Profitable (Recession-Proof) Products - No. 8: Application Development
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8. Application Development
2008 Profitability Rating: 13%
2007 Profitability Rating: 11%
Profitability Change: +2%
You can’t buy everything off the shelf, and some business needs require specialty built or modified software. Custom application development provides competent solution providers a profit-rich offering, since anything custom should cost more. Application development demands technical competencies and skill sets that more than justifies the higher costs than COTS. Nowadays, though, solution providers can act as project managers and outsource the development to a third party, meaning they can reap the benefits of the higher margins while maintaining a lower cost structure.